What’s in That Whopper? Burger King Busted Selling Horse Meat

It’s both sad and gross at the same time. After nearly two weeks of trying to reassure the public that Burger King’s products were safe, the fast food giant just announced that an internal investigation confirmed that burgers containing horse meat have been sold in its United Kingdom locations!

Rumors of the contamination were first triggered by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland after it found horse meat in the frozen beef burgers of several major grocery suppliers in Ireland and the UK. The contaminated meat is from the Ireland-based processing company Silvercrest, which is a subsidiary of ABP Food Group.

"These recent revelations of horse meat in European hamburgers are proof that the predatory horse slaughter industry isn't worried about who it victimizes—horses and diners are all at risk," says Nancy Perry, Senior Vice President of ASPCA Government Relations. “In addition to the inherent cruelty of horse slaughter, the toxicity of horse meat is a big problem. We’ve become increasingly aware of all the drugs routinely given to horses that are dangerous to humans and banned for use in animals raised for human consumption.”

Take Action!This incident happened across the ocean, but horses are at risk of terrifying, inhumane deaths at slaughterhouses right here at home: Horse slaughter proponents are taking drastic steps to re-open horse slaughter plants in the United States! Please visit the ASPCA Advocacy Center to urge U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to reject any application to operate a horse slaughter facility in the U.S.

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Comments

This is why I don't eat meat. We all should try to cut down our consumption of animals all together. I am a loving and responsible horse owner, but I hear of a lot of unwanted horses going to Mexico for a cruel slaughter . There has to be a better way....

While Burger King admits that its beef supplier for the UK, Silvercrest, was found to have small amounts of equine meat in its beef, they maintain that samples taken from three countries, The United Kindom,Ireland, and Denmark showed no signs of contamination. Did you know that until the horse overtook the oxen as the primary farm animal horses were routinely raised as a source of meat?

Ok, why is everyone freaking out over this? If they open slaughter houses for horses then they probably won't be treating them with the drugs that are harmful for human consumption, so what's the problem? Millions of animals are slaughtered every day for human consumption, what makes a horse any different? You people are straight dee, if you have a problem with it for reals, quit using any animal products, like the rest of the Vegans...

Ok, why is everyone freaking out over this? If they open slaughter houses for horses then they probably won't be treating them with the drugs that are harmful for human consumption, so what's the problem? Millions of animals are slaughtered every day for human consumption, what makes a horse any different? You people are straight dee, if you have a problem with it for reals, quit using any animal products, like the rest of the Vegans...

Everyone must know the full truth about horse slaughter. The United States, along with many other countries, are in a bind because the population of horses are way too high. It is imperative that horse slaughter is reopened to help with this rising population. Now before anyone jumps down my throat, I am getting my degree in animal science, and am applying to vet school. I have the welfare of animals first in my mind. With the population of horses as high as they are, there are several individuals who turn horses loose or starve them to death because they cannot afford the requirements to take care of them. These horses would be humanly euthanized, and in the U.S. would be exported for other countries use. Please remember this when making an opinion about this subject. I have personally seen two dead horses lying in the middle of the woods because someone turned them loose to starve. If horse slaughter was available, these animals would not have to suffer.

What really needs to be considered in this issue is the serious risk to human health that is contained in commercially slaughtered horse meat. The levels of adrenaline and cortisol produced by equines are far, far greater than any legal levels found in any other meat harvested for human consumption. Horses are specifically bred for adrenaline production, not for human consumption.

The fatally flawed head-shot kill method (severe head trauma) used in all commercial horse slaughter ensures that all of the adrenaline and cortisol that can possibly be produced by the animal is delivered throughout the flesh post shot. This is evidenced to any layman bythe pulsing of the animal. In commercial beef production they call this “dark cutting” and the meat is not (supposed to be) legally approved for human consumption. Adrenaline and cortisol consumption by humans causes Colorectal and other forms of cancer.

It is not just the existence of prohibited medications and other man-made substances in the meat that is illegal---it is the abundance of naturally occurring hormones and steroids that make horse meat more carcinogenic than any other commercially slaughtered meat.

I'm not a food nazi..I'm not a wacko animal rights activist but I do think if you buy a burger you should have some assurance that the burger is made the right way, that is with beef and only additives for taste. Eating horse without my knowledge would make me very angry.